The King family’s attempts for a criminal trial were denied, as
suspect James Ray’s recant of what he claimed was a false confession was
denied. Mr. Ray said that his government-appointed attorney told him to
sign a confession in order to receive a trial. When Mr. Ray discovered
that his signature meant no trial, his and the King family’s subsequent
requests were denied.

The US government also denied the King family’s requests for independent investigation of the assassination.

Therefore, and importantly, the US government has never presented any
evidence subject to challenge that substantiates their claim that Mr.
Ray assassinated Dr. King.

US corporate media did not cover the trial, interview the King
family, and textbooks omit this information. Journalist and author,
James Douglass: [71]

“I can hardly believe the fact that, apart from the
courtroom participants, only Memphis TV reporter Wendell Stacy and I
attended from beginning to end this historic three-and-one-half week
trial. Because of journalistic neglect scarcely anyone else in this land
of ours even knows what went on in it. After critical testimony was
given in the trial’s second week before an almost empty gallery, Barbara
Reis, U.S. correspondent for the Lisbon daily Publico who was
there several days, turned to me and said, "Everything in the U.S. is
the trial of the century. O.J. Simpson’s trial was the trial of the
century. Clinton’s trial was the trial of the century. But this is the trial of the century, and who’s here?" ”

“Media coverage of the Simpson trial, which began in
January 1995, was unlike any other. Over two thousand reporters covered
the trial, and 80 miles of cable was required to allow nineteen
television stations to cover the trial live to 91 percent of the
American viewing audience. When the verdict was finally read on October
3, 1995, some 142 million people listened or watched. It seemed the
nation stood still, divided along racial lines as to the defendant's
guilt or innocence. During and after the trial, over eighty books were
published about the event by most everyone involved in the Simpson
case.”

The overwhelming evidence of government complicity introduced and
agreed as comprehensively valid by the jury includes the 111th Military
Intelligence Group were sent to Dr. King’s location, and that the usual
police protection was pulled away just before the assassination.
Military Intelligence set-up photographers on a roof of a fire station
with a clear view to Dr. King’s balcony. 20th Special Forces Group had
an 8-man sniper team at the assassination location on that day. Memphis
police ordered the scene where multiple witnesses reported as the source
of shooting cut down of their bushes that would have hid a sniper team.
Along with sanitizing a crime scene, police abandoned investigative
procedure to interview witnesses who lived by the scene of the shooting.

The King family believes the government’s motivation to murder Dr.
King was to prevent his imminent camp-in at Washington, D.C. until the
Vietnam War was ended and those resources directed to end poverty and
invest in US hard and soft infrastructure.

Please watch this six-minute video of the evidence from the trial, [73] and this eight-minute video
[74] on the FBI’s disclosures of covert operations against Dr. King,
including confirmation from his closest friends and advisors.

Coretta Scott King, Dr. King’s wife, is certain of the evidence after
30 years of consideration from the 1968 assassination to the 1999
trial:

“For a quarter of a century, Bill Pepper conducted an
independent investigation of the assassination of Martin Luther King,
Jr. He opened his files to our family, encouraged us to speak with the
witnesses, and represented our family in the civil trial against the
conspirators. The jury affirmed his findings, providing our family with a
long-sought sense of closure and peace, which had been denied by
official disinformation and cover- ups. Now the findings of his
exhaustive investigation and additional revelations from the trial are
presented in the pages of this important book. We recommend it highly to
everyone who seeks the truth about Dr. King's assassination.” — Coretta Scott King, Dr. King's wife.

The US Department of Justice issued a report in 2000
that explains their investigation into their own possible guilt in the
assassination found no evidence to warrant further investigation. Dr.
King’s son issued the following statement [75] rebuking a “self-study” rather than the independent investigation the King family assert the evidence demands:

“We learned only hours before the Justice Department
press conference that they were releasing the report of their results of
their "limited investigation," which covered only two areas of new
evidence concerning the assassination of Dr. King. We had requested that
we be given a copy of the report a few days in advance so that we might
have had the opportunity to review it in detail. Since that courtesy
was not extended to us, we are only able at this time to state the
following:

1. We initially requested that a comprehensive investigation be
conducted by a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, independent of the
government, because we do not believe that, in such a
politically-sensitive matter, the government is capable of investigating
itself.

2. The type of independent investigation we sought was denied by the
federal government. But in our view, it was carried out, in a Memphis
courtroom, during a month-long trial by a jury of 12 American citizens
who had no interest other than ascertaining the truth. (Kings v. Jowers)

3. After hearing and reviewing the extensive testimony and evidence,
which had never before been tested under oath in a court of law, it took
the Memphis jury only one (1) hour to find that a conspiracy to kill
Dr. King did exist. Most significantly, this conspiracy involved agents
of the governments of the City of Memphis, the state of Tennessee and
the United States of America. The overwhelming weight of the evidence
also indicated that James Earl Ray was not the triggerman and, in fact,
was an unknowing patsy.

4. We stand by that verdict and have no doubt that the truth about this terrible event has finally been revealed.

5. We urge all interested Americans to read the transcript of the trial on the King Center website and consider the evidence, so they can form their own unbiased conclusions.

Although we cooperated fully with this limited investigation, we
never really expected that the government report would be any more
objective than that which has resulted from any previous official
investigation.”

Let’s summarize: Under US Civil Law, covert US government agencies
were found guilty of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Dr. King was the leading figure of the Civil Rights Movement, a Nobel
Peace Prize winner, and widely recognized as one of the world’s greatest
speakers for what it means to be human. The family’s conclusion as to
motive was to prevent Dr. King from ending the Vietnam War because the
government wanted to continue its ongoing covert and overt military
operations to control foreign governments and their resources.

It is therefore a factual statement that under US Civil Law, the US government assassinated Dr. King.

This is similar that under Criminal Law, both O.J. Simpson and the US
government are not legally guilty for murder, but both parties are
guilty for killing innocent victims under Civil Law.

Let’s apply some critical thinking skills to this history of Dr. King
that is probably new to you. People of sufficient intellectual
integrity and moral courage to apply critical thinking skills will
embrace the trial evidence and testimony, jury conclusion, and King
family analysis as appropriate and helpful information in seeking the
facts.

When someone says that a body of evidence is “crazy,” or a
“conspiracy theory” (meaning an irrational claim easily refuted by the
evidence) that’s a claim. With a claim comes a burden of proof. In this
case, the person would have to demonstrate command of the facts to
explain and prove why the evidence from the civil trial is somehow
“crazy” and easily refuted.

If the person can do this, it would be tremendously helpful in
understanding the facts. However, we know from our experience that such
statements almost always have zero factual support, and that the person
making such a claim literally doesn’t know what they’re talking about.

We also know from our experience, a person making such a statement is
really voicing an emotional reaction something closer to the spirit of,
“The government killed Dr. King? Ok, I read and understood the
paragraphs about the trial and evidence. I read Mrs. King’s and her
son’s statement. I haven’t invested the time to verify how valid that
information is. I’m not stupid, but because the implications of what
that means is so disturbing, I’m going to deny anything about it could
possibly be true as my first response. If I’m going to continue being in
denial and refuse to discuss the evidence, I’ll attack the messenger.”

We also need to consider the lack of coverage by US corporate media
of this compelling evidence, trial verdict, and King family testimony
from over 30 years’ analysis of the facts. Recall the evidence of US
corporate media reporting being infiltrated by CIA agents to
propagandize Americans’ access to information. This included the
Director of the CIA’s admission to Congress that they have over 400
agents working in corporate media to make the US public believe what the
CIA wants them to believe.

In 2006, George Washington University used a Freedom of Information
Act request to obtain the US military’s “Information Operations
Roadmap.” This formerly secret and approved document details present US
government strategies to generate propaganda, and then attack Internet
alternative media that provides dangerous facts and discussion. The
military promoted the term, “Fight the net.” [76]

Although I won’t enter the burden of proof here, you may know that
there are similar and related bodies of evidence that the US government
assassinated other American leaders who opposed key policies of an
apparent violent faction within US government. The 1975 Senate Church
Committee disclosed that the US government initiated and helped
assassination attempts on multiple foreign heads of state. [77]

If we were discussing how the population of some other nation could
employ critical thinking skills to understand current events from
anytime in history, we would certainly understand the importance to
anticipate disinformation from government, danger of controlled media,
and assassination as a political weapon.

Failure to do so would appropriately elicit the label attributed to
the first dictator of the Soviet Union, Vladimir Lenin. Such people who
believe what their government tells them when the history and present
have overwhelming objective evidence to explain, document, and prove
that the government is typical of so many other historical self-serving
oligarchies are:

“Useful idiots.”

To the extent the United States today is any different from all other
nations and all other times is up to your exercise of critical thinking
skills.

Your choice of a current event to research and consider will provide
you with helpful evidence to answer that question for yourself.

An Act of State: The Execution of Martin Luther King (Updated)
On April 4 1968, Martin Luther King was in Memphis supporting a workers’
strike. By nightfall, army snipers were in position, military officers
were on a nearby roof with cameras, and Lloyd Jowers had been paid to
remove the gun after the fatal shot was fired. When the dust had
settled, King had been hit and a clean-up operation was set in
motion-James Earl Ray was framed, the crime scene was destroyed, and
witnesses were killed. William Pepper, attorney and friend of King, has
conducted a thirty-year investigation into his assassination. In 1999,
Loyd Jowers and other co-conspirators were brought to trial in a civil
action suit on behalf of the King family. Seventy witnesses set out the
details of a conspiracy that involved J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI,
Richard Helms and the CIA, the military, Memphis police, and organized
crime. The jury took an hour to find for the King family. In An Act of
State, you finally have the truth before you-how the US government shut
down a movement for social change by stopping its leader dead in his
tracks.

“In 1977 the family of Martin Luther King engaged an attorney and
friend, Dr. William Pepper, to investigate a suspicion they had. They no
longer believed that James Earl Ray was the killer. For their peace of
mind, for an accurate record of history, and out of a sense of justice
they conducted a two decade long investigation. The evidence they
uncovered was put before a jury in Memphis, TN, in November 1999. 70
witnesses testified under oath, 4,000 pages of transcripts described
that evidence, much of it new. It took the jury 59 minutes to come back
with their decision that exonerated James Earl Ray, who had already died
in prison. The jury found that Lloyd Jowers, owner of Jim’s Grill, had
participated in a conspiracy to kill King. The evidence showed that the
conspiracy included J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI, Richard Helms and the
CIA, the military, the Memphis police department, and organized crime.”

###

Back Cover

On April 4, 1968, Martin Luther King was in Memphis supporting a
worker’s strike. By nightfall, army snipers were in position, military
officers were on a nearby floor with cameras, and Loyd Jowers had been
paid to remove the gun after the fatal shot was fired. When the dust had
settled, King had been hit and a clean-up operation was set in motion —
James Earl Ray was framed, the crime scene was destroyed, and witnesses
were killed. William Pepper, attorney and friend of King, has conducted
a thirty-year investigation into his assassination. In 1999, Loyd
Jowers and other co-conspirators were brought to trial in a civil action
suit on behalf of the King family. Seventy witnesses set out the
details of a conspiracy that involved J. Edgar Hoover and the FBI,
Richard Helms and the CIA, the military, Memphis police, and organized
crime. The jury took an hour to find for the King family. In An Act of State,
you finally have the truth before you–how the US government shut down a
movement for social change by stopping its leader dead in his tracks.

Testimonials

“Dr Pepper, a trusted associate of my father in the anti-war movement
and a dedicated follower of his teaching, has conducted exhaustive
research and shed new light on all of the critical questions including
the extent of the involvement of government intelligence agenices,
military units and organized crime in the assassination, the motives
behind it, and the individuals who ordered and participated in it.” –
Dexter King

“For a quarter of a century, Bill Pepper conducted an independent
investigation of the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. He opened
his files to our family, encouraged us to speak with the witnesses, and
represented our family in the civil trial against the conspirators. The
jury affirmed his findings, providing our family with a long-sought
sense of closure and peace, which had been denied by official
disinformation and cover-ups. Now the findings of his exhaustive
investigation and additional revelations from the trial are presented in
the pages of this important book. We recommend it highly to everyone
who seeks the truth about Dr. King’s assassination.” – Coretta Scott
King

“Within the first chapter, An Act of State presents enough
circumstantial evidence to raise questions about Ray’s involvement as
the sole assassin.” – Washington Post

“Pepper has gathered an impressive array of testimony and evidence
that, even to determined skeptics, throws doubt over the state’s case
against James Earl Ray.” – Kirkus

“Few Facts are more important to the future of our country and our
understanding of the nature of our species than the identities and
motives of the persons responsible for the assassinations of Martin
Luther King, Jr. President John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy and
Malcolm X. These deaths have affected more than mere events. They have
torn our people between belief and disbelief. Conscious, persistent
pursuit of the truth of these assassinations is essential to our
character and faith. No one has done more than Dr. William F. Pepper to
keep alive the quest for the truth concerning the violent death of
Martin Luther King who in courageous and important words once said ‘The
greatest purveyor of violence on earth is my own government.’ In An Act of State,
Bill Pepper argues that very government violence was turned on
America’s greatest prophet of non-violent change.” – Ramsey Clark, US
Attorney General, 1967-69

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